Circulating water pump for internal-combustion engines



March 17, 1953 G. N. LITTLE 2,631,575

CIRCULATING WATER PUMP FOR INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINES Filed Oct. 15,1949 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 1y. 1 Z I A y 2 fl ii 2 4 f; 7 4; a /6 A? 71 24 JJ 7/ J5 J4 J4 7/ Z J J i I g 2 I 5 a; v K m mmvroze, feyzya/ZZ 177/62izia/m y.

G. N. LITTLE March 17, 1953 CIRCULATING WATER PUMP FORINTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINES Filed 001;. 15, 1949 2. SHEETSSHEET 2 I myuu u INVENIOR, fad/y: JK'J/ff/f.

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Patented Mar. 17, 1953 CIRCULATING WATER PUMP FOR INTERNAL-COMBUSTIQNENGINES- George N. Little, Kansas (City, Mo., assignor of one-fourth tohimself, one-fourth to Walter S. Pyle, Kansas City, one-fourth toCharles 0. Spangler and one-fourth to J. Leo Spangler,

Independence, Mo.

Application October 15, 1949, Serial No. 121,480

8 Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in watercirculating pumps, and has particular reference to a water circulatingpump suitable for use in the cooling systems of internal combustionengines.

The principal object of the present invention is the provision of awater circulating pump wherein the impeller and the drive pulley arecarried by a single bearing carried by the pump housing whereby thelateral belt load for driving the pulley is not transmitted to theimpeller or impeller shaft.

Another object is the provision, in a pump of the character described,of a drive pulley carried by a bearing mounted on the pump housing, animpeller shaft fixed to said pulley and extending within said housing,and an impeller fixed on said shaft within said housing, said shaft andimpeller floating within said housing, that is, the shaft and impellerdo not have bearings in and do not contact said housing.

Another object is the provision, in a pump of the character described,of means whereby the sealed connection at the point where the impellershaft enters the pump housing is disposed at a point remote from thebearings supporting said shaft, whereby water possibly leaking throughsaid joint cannot enter said bearings.

Other objects are simplicity and economy of construction, efficiency,and ease of disassembly for repair or replacement of parts.

With these objects in view, as well as other objects which will appearin the course of the specification, reference will be had to thedrawing, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a water circulating pump embodying the presentinvention shown mounted on the fragmentarily shown block of an internalcombustion engine, with parts broken away.

Fig. 2 is a section taken on line II-II of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the pump.

Fig. 4 is a vertical section taken on line IV-IV of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a section taken on line VV of Fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is a side elevational View of the bearing sleeve.

Like reference numerals apply to similar parts throughout the severalviews, and the numeral 2 applies to a pump housing having a substan- 4tially cylindrical water chamber 4 in one end and an internally threadedaxial bore 6 in its opposite end. The chamber Ll is provided with anaxial inlet passageway 8 and a peripheral outlet passageway l0communicating with the water cooling a water-tight seal between thehousing and the engine block.

An externally threaded tubular bearing sleeve 22 is threaded into bore 6of pump housing 2,

and is disposed coaxially with pump chamber l of said housing. A setscrew 23 holds said sleeve firmly in place. Said sleeve extendsoutwardly from said housing, and is provided at its outer end with ahexagonal section 24 for receiving a wrench or the like. Said sleevealso extends within housing 2, and a lock nut 26 is threaded on theinner end thereof. A lead washer 2B disposed between said lock nut andsaid housing provides a fixed and permanent seal preventing leakage ofwater around the bearing sleeve. Thus the bearing sleeve is rigidlyattached to and forms an axial extension of the housing, Drive pulley135i, having a V-groove 32 for receiving the drive belt, not shown, ismounted for axial rotation on bearing sleeve 22 outside of housing 2.Said pulley is carried by a doublerow ball bearing 35, the inner race 36of which is mounted on a cylndrical portion 38 of said sleeve. Saidinner bearing race is prevented from moving longitudinally along thebearing sleeve by its engagement between the end of housing 2 and ashoulder formed on said sleeve. The outer race 42 of the bearing ispush-fitted into a recess it formed in the hub of pulley 30. A standardoil fitting 46 for lubricating ball bearing 34 is fixed in the outerface of pulley 3d and communicates with recess 44. Said recess is sealedat its inner end by a gasket 48 disposed between the inner end ofbearing race 36 and the bottom of recess i l, and at its outer end issealed by the usual sealing ring 50 extending between the bearing racesand secured in place by a split ring 52.

Drive pulley 36 is provided with a plurality of lugs extending outwardlyfrom the outer face thereof parallel to hearing sleeve 22. A plate 56 isrigidly secured to the outer ends of said lugs by means of screws 58,said plate being disposed at right angles t the axis of the bearingsleeve, and the inner face of said plate being spaced apart from theouter end of said bearing sleeve. An impeller shaft 5% is carriedaxially in bearing sleeve 22, being of substantially smaller diameterthan the internal diameter of said sleeve. The

. outer end of said shaft is threaded securely into plate 55, and animpeller wheel 62 is threaded securely to the inner end of said shaftwithin chamber l of the pump housing. Said impeller wheel includes aback face plate 54 and radially extending vanes 66, whereby when saidwheel is rotated by rotating pulley 39, water will be drawn inwardlythrough inlet passage 8 and forced outwardly through outlet passage H3,and thence throughout the cooling system of the engine in theconventional manner. Screws 58 may also be used for attaching amotor-cooling fan, not shown, to plate 56. When said screws are removedfor attaching or detaching said fan, the pump is held in the assembledposition by a pair of screws 68 extending through plate 56 and threadedinto the forward face of pulley 39, as best shown in Fig. 2.

An annular recess it concentric with shaft 69 is formed in the innerface of plate 56. A cylindrical sheet metal sleeve 12 is press fitttedwithin saidrecess and'a similar sleeve M is press fitted within sleeve'52. At their inner ends, at the bottom of recess ltl, said sleeves areformed respectively to present inwardly-turned flanges 1E and 18, saidflanges being spaced apart longitudinally of shaft 69. A frustoconicaltube 8!? of rubber or other suitable fiexible material is disposedwithin recess '58, having its inner end clamped between flanges it? andit, and having its'outer end cemented or otherwise securely fixed to theouter edge of an annular rin 32 made of a graphite composition or othersuitable bearing material. Said ring is disposed about shaft 69, andbears rotatably against the outer end of bearing sleeve 22. Said sleeveis provided with a short longitudinal extension 8d of reduced diameterwhich projects within ring 82 to prevent lateral movement thereof. Ahelical compression spring 86 is disposed within recess 70, bearing atone end against the floor of said recess and at its opposite end againstring 82, urging said ring resiliently against bearing sleeve 22. Thus anefficient seal is provided which normally will prevent leakage of waterfrom the pump, which will not impart any lateral stresses to theimpeller shaft, and which is yieldable both longitudinally and laterallyrelative to the shaft 60, in order to compensate for inaccuracies ofmanufacture and assembly of the parts. Furthermore, should any leakageoccur, it would occur at a point remote from the main bearing 34, sothat water could not enter said bearing to cause rusting ordeterioration thereof.

Thus it is apparent that a water circulating pump having severaladvantages has been produced. The drive pulley supports the entire loadof the pulley and is carried on the pump housing, thereby removing alllateral or bending stresses from the impeller shaft. The impeller andimpeller shaft are supported entirely by the drive pulley, and float inthe housing without bearings therein and without touching said housingat any point. This eliminates the set of bearings customarily employedfor the shaft in pumps wherein the drive pulley is supported by thehousing. Also, besides simplicity and economy, this arrangement permitssmoother operation and larger manufacturing tolerances. In pumps whereinthe drive pulley and impeller shaft are rigidly connected, and supportedby separate bearings, very slight eccentricities of the two bearingswill cause a serious drag on the pump operation and cause rapid wear ofthe bearings. Elimination of one set of bearings obviates thisdifficulty.

Although I have shown a specific embodiment of my invention, it isapparent that many minor variations of construction and operation couldbe made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What I claim is:

l. A water circulating pump comprising a housing having an internalchamber and inlet and outlet passages communicating with said chamber,said housing having an axial tubular extension open at its outer end andcommunicating with said chamber, a drive pulley carried for rotation onsaid extension, an impeller shaft of smaller diameter than the internaldiameter of said extension rigidly fixed to said pulley and extendingaxially through said extension into said housing, an impeller wheelfixed to said shaft within said pump chamber, a sealing member carriedmovably by said pulley, and resilient means for urging said sealingmember against the end of said housing extension in a direction parallelto said shaft.

2. A water circulating pump comprising a housing having an internalchamber and inlet 1 and outlet passages communicating with said chamber,said housing having an axial tubular extension open at its outer end andcommunicating with said chamber, a drive pulley carried for rotation onsaid extension, a plate fixed to said pulley and disposed in spacedrelation to the outer end of said housing extension, an impeller shaftof smaller diameter than the internal diameter of said housing extensionfixed in said plate and extending axially through said housing extensioninto said housing, an impeller wheel fixed to said shaft within saidpump chamber, a sealing member carried by said plate for movementlongitudinally and laterally relative to said shaft, and resilient meansfor urging said sealing member against the free end of said housingextension.

3. A water circulating pump comprising a housing having an internalchamber and inlet and outlet passages communicating with said chamber,said housing having an axial tubular extension open at its outer end andcommunicating with said chamber, a drive pulley carried for rotation onsaid extension, a plate fixed to said pulley and disposed in spacedrelation to the outer end of said housing extension, an impeller shaftof smaller diameter than the internal diameter of said housing extensionfixed in said plate and extending axially through said housing extensioninto said housing, an impeller wheel fixed to said shaft within saidpump chamber, a tubular member of flexible material secured at one endto said plate and at its opposite end to a sealing ring and a springurging said sealing ring resiliently against the end of said housingextension.

4. A water circulating pump comprising a housing having an internalchamber and inlet and outlet passages communicating with said chamber,said housing having an axial tubular extension open at its outer end andcommunicating with said chamber, a drive pulley carried for rotation onsaid extension, a plate fixed to said pulley and disposed in spacedrelation to the outer end of said housing extension, an impeller shaftof smaller diameter than the internal diameter of said housing extensionfixed in said plate and extending axially through said housing extensioninto said housing, an impeller Wheel fixed to said shaft within saidpump chamber, a tubular. member of flexible material secured at one endto said plate and at its opposite end to an annular sealing ring, and aspring urging said sealing ring against the end of said housingextension, said housing extension being formed to present a reducedportion disposed within the inner diameter of said sealing ring.

5. A water circulating pump comprising a housing having an internalchamber and inlet and outlet-passage communicating with said chamber,said housing having an axial tubular extension open at its outer end andcommunicating with said chamber, a drive pulley rotatably mounted onsaid housing extension in spaced relation from the free end thereof, aplate fixed to said pulley and overlying the free end of said housingextension in spaced apart relation therefrom, a shaft of smallerdiameter than the internal diameter of said housing extension fixed insaid plate" and extending axially through said housing extension, animpeller Wheel fixed to said shaft within said housing chamber, atubular member of flexible material disposed about said shaft, saidtubular member being sealed at one end to said plate, an annular sealingring having its outer edge sealed in the opposite end of said flexibletubular member, and a spring for urging said sealing ring longitudinallyagainst the free end of said housing extension, said housing extensionhaving a reduced portion fitting within the inner diameter of saidsealing ring.

6. A pump comprising a housing adapted to be secured removably to aninternal combustion engine and provided with an internal chamber havinginlet and outlet passages communicating with the water-cooling system ofsaid engine, said housing having an axial tubular extension open at itsouter end and communicating with said pump chamber, a drive pulleymounted for rotation on said housing extension, an impeller shaft ofsmaller diameter than the internal diameter of said extension carriedrigidly by said pulley and extending axially through said housingextension, an impeller wheel fixed to said shaft within said pumpchamber, a sealing member carried by said pulley for movement parallelto said shaft, and resilient means for urging said sealing memberagainst the free end of said housing extension.

7. A pump comprising a housing adapted to be secured removably to aninternal combustion engine and provided with an internal chamber havinginlet and outlet passages communicating with the water-cooling system ofsaid engine, said housing having an axial tubular extension open at itsouter end and communicating with said pump chamber, a drive pulleymounted for rotation on said housing extension, an impeller shaft ofsmaller diameter than the internal diameter of said extension carriedrigidly by said pulley and extending axially through said housingextension, an impeller wheel fixed to said shaft within said pumpchamber, a sealing member carried by said pulley for movement paralleland transverse to said shaft, and resilient means for urging saidsealing member longitudinally against the free end of said housingextension, said housing extension being formed to engage said sealingmemher to prevent movement thereof transverse to said housing extension.

8. A pump comprising a housing adapted to be secured removably to aninternal combustion engine and provided with an internal chamber havinginlet and outlet passages communicating with the water-cooling system ofsaid engine, said housing having an axial tubular extension open at itsouter end and communicating with said pump chamber, a drive pulleymounted for rotation on said housing extension in spaced relation fromthe free end thereof, a plate fixed to said pulley and overlying thefree end of said housing extension in spaced-apart relation therefrom,an impeller shaft of smaller diameter than the internal diameter of saidextension fixed in said plate and extending axially through said housingextension, an impeller wheel fixed to said shaft within said pumpchamber, a tubular member of flexible material sealed at one end to saidplate, an annular sealing ring having its outer edge sealed in theopposite end of said flexible tube, and resilient means urging saidsealing ring against the free end of said housing extension, saidhousing extension having a reduced circular portion extending withinsaid sealing ring.

GEORGE N. LITTLE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,930,586 Delaval-Crow Oct. 17,1933 1,960,282 Walker May 29, 1934 2,005,193 Mayo June 18, 19352,028,360 Sprink Jan. 21, 1936 2,522,231 Loftis Sept. 12, 1950 FOREIGNPATENTS Number Country Date 157,480 Great Britain Jan. 27, 1921 627,928France Oct. 15, 1927

